reservist

normally when i think of t and a i am thinking of tits and arse. except now i will always think of it as iain duncan smith’s latest and, perhaps, greatest wheeze. 

for those who haven’t been paying attention the con/dems are planning on cutting the armed forces by 20,000, or they might do if they can ever decide to commit to the plans that the ministry of defence has given them. with the drop in the number of personnel it means that in certain circumstances there will be an increased reliance on reservists and private contractors - now i have never understood the use of private contractors: surely they are going to be more expensive than the staff they are replacing? 

anyway more reservists are going to be needed. 

where are they going to come from? never fear iain duncan smith has the solution – he has instructed jobcentres around the country to actively encourage those claiming jobseekers allowance to join their local branch of the territorial army. 

no fucking way – i hear you cry.

yes fucking way – i reply. 

join the territorial army, given my experience with the jobcentre there will be a moan or two about you having to sign on when you are asked to go on manoeuvres. even better is that it will equip some of the most disenfranchised among the population with some of the skills they will need to make sure the next time there is a riot they know how to handle themselves that much better. 

i tip my cap to you mr. duncan smith – yours is a madcap scheme worthy of a bond villain.

i will be sending my application off to the territorials in the morning.